ChildCare Education Institute® (CCEI), an online child care training provider dedicated exclusively to the early care and education workforce, offers CCEI530B: Nutrition II: Nutrition and Food Service in the Child Care Setting as a no-cost trial course to new CCEI users November 1-30, 2017.

Millions of children get a significant portion of their daily nutrition from meals they receive in child care facilities. Many children spend eight hours or more in a child care setting and receive as much as 70% of meals while away from home. Unfortunately, current research has documented a number of problems with the nutritional health of children. As a result of poor nutrition and decreased levels of exercise, the occurrence of childhood obesity has doubled in the last 20 years. According to a report from the Centers for Disease Control, it is estimated that 15% of children under the age of six are overweight. The problem of obesity is worse for children in day care. The Journal of the American Medical Association estimates 32% of children in government subsidized child care are overweight.

It is clear that child care professionals have a responsibility to improve nutritional policies to support the children in their care. Training for nutrition, food safety, and child development is essential for teachers. Research has shown that teacher training has a direct impact on the quality of nutrition and health in environments for children. This course examines proper food service methods to be implemented in the childcare setting. Upon successful completion of this course, students should be able to define a food and nutrition policy for a child care center, list steps to reduce choking hazards, and explain proper food preparation and food storage methods for an early childhood environment.

“This course contains essential knowledge for center directors, teachers, and food service staff about the importance of proper nutrition during childhood, as well as safe, educationally valuable food service strategies,” says Maria C. Taylor, President and CEO of CCEI.

CCEI530B: Nutrition II: Nutrition and Food Service in the Child Care Setting is a one-hour, beginner-level course and grants 0.1 IACET CEU upon successful completion. Current CCEI users with active, unlimited annual subscriptions can register for professional development courses at no additional cost when logged in to their CCEI account. Users without subscriptions can purchase child care training courses as block hours through CCEI online enrollment.

ChildCare Education Institute® provides high-quality, distance education certificates and child care training programs in an array of child care settings, including preschool centers, family child care, prekindergarten classrooms, nanny care, online daycare training and more. Over 100 English and Spanish child care training courses are available online to meet licensing, recognition program, and Head Start Requirements. CCEI also has online certification programs that provide the coursework requirement for national credentials including the CDA, Director and Early Childhood Credentials. CCEI is nationally accredited by the Distance Education Accrediting Commission (DEAC), is accredited as an Authorized Provider by the International Association for Continuing Education and Training (IACET), and is authorized under the Nonpublic Postsecondary Educational Institutions Act of 1990, license number 837.